CTS Blog and Articles

The endurance athlete's source for information on training, nutrition, motivation, strategy, and more.

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Correcting the Biggest Mistake Cyclists and Triathletes Make on Climbs

4 Things Athletes Need to Know in their 40s, 50s, and Beyond

By Chris Carmichael I am a cyclist in my mid-50s and I spend a lot of time riding with athletes up to 30 years younger and 25 years older than me. People ask me about the impact of age on endurance athletes, and here’s what I tell them: Coaching Special: For a limited time, first month…

Posted: September 18, 2014

Author: CTS

Tips and Workout to Keep Your Climbing Power This Fall

It snowed – briefly – in Colorado Springs recently, which means there’s no denying that Fall and Winter are rapidly approaching. Many cyclists and triathletes are wrapping up their event seasons, which means we’re having a lot of discussions about short- and medium-term goals. One of the top goals: maintain climbing power. Coaching Special:…

Posted: September 12, 2014

Author: CTS

The Athlete’s Identity: Should You Really Call Yourself An “Athlete” Anymore?

Recently Chris Carmichael was interviewed about the role of identity in keeping athletes engaged in sport, and how an person’s identification as an athlete evolves over time and as the result of changes in the person’s age, career, and family life. This is a subject we deal with a lot when working with athletes,…

Posted: September 10, 2014

Author: CTS

Master the Most Fundamental and Overlooked Skill in Cycling

“Pick your head up!” In recent years that is probably one of the phrases I’ve used most in group rides, charity rides, and during camps and Bucket List events. Of all the habits that make a cyclist more economical, safer, and faster in a group, keeping your head up and your eyes forward is…

Posted: September 5, 2014

Author: CTS

Why Training With Heart Rate is Still Relevant

Heart Rate Training Is Not Dead Like so many areas in our lives, the pace of innovation in cycling is accelerating. Power meters were once a rare sight anywhere outside of the pro or Olympic team ranks; now they are ubiquitous at the Saturday coffee shop ride. But this has led to a few…

Posted: September 3, 2014

Author: CTS

Weekend Reading: Why training fails, and what to do about it

We’ve arrived at the time of the year when athletes are wrapping up their summer seasons and looking forward to the next steps in their training and competition calendars. For the vast majority of coached athletes, these are great conversations about victories, personal bests, and great personal achievements. But there are also some tough conversations…

Posted: August 29, 2014

Author: CTS

Weekend Reading: Behind the Scenes at the USA Pro Challenge!

I’m going to keep this brief because I’m still in the thick of the USA Pro Challenge Race Experience. We’ve been having a great week and I’m so proud of the athletes who have been riding every stage of this great race with my coaches and me. And it’s been great to upload my data…

Posted: August 22, 2014

Author: CTS

Weekend Reading: What Can You Achieve in the Next 18 Months?

What a week! Last Saturday I was up in Leadville, Colorado, to support CTS Athletes as they conquered the Leadville 100 MTB Race, this week we announced the 2015 Bucket List Event Schedule and released the “CTS Endless Summer” report, and tomorrow I’m headed to Aspen to meet Team CTS before the start of the…

Posted: August 15, 2014

Author: CTS

5 Ways Roadies and Triathletes Can Be Faster Mountain Bikers

By Jim Rutberg The idea for this article occurred to me as I watched a friend roll into T2 of an off-road triathlon in Colorado. Somewhere underneath the blood and mud was a strong and talented triathlete, but he had made the crucial mistake of believing superior fitness could compensate for poor mountain bike skills….

Posted: August 13, 2014

Author: CTS

Weekend Reading: 8 Support Tips for Improving Race Day Performance

This morning more than 2000 athletes will roll off the start line of the Leadville 100, including 60+ CTS Athletes. It’s just one of many events we send our coaches to in order to support our athletes, and I’m proud to say that CTS Athletes have consistently beaten the overall race finish rates at…